MADEIRA BEACH – Longtime Treasure Island city planner Lynn Rosetti has been selected as community development director in Madeira Beach.
The job has been open since January 2011, when previous director Paula Cohen left to join Treasure Island’s planning staff.
City Manager Shane Crawford announced Rosetti’s appointment at the April 24 City Commission workshop. Filling the position is seen as key to implementing a number of pending new development projects.
Rosetti has been a city planner at Treasure Island for the past 12 years. Prior to that, she served for over 20 years with the city of St. Petersburg planning department. Some of Rosetti’s most recent accomplishments include implementing Treasure Island’s Downtown Redevelopment Plan and evaluation and appraisal of the city’s comprehensive plan. She also has been working on a long-range disaster recovery plan for Treasure Island.
Rosetti will start work in Madeira Beach on May 14.
Rosetti said she is very much looking forward to becoming the city’s Community Development Director. In an email note, she said, “I come to Madeira Beach with many years of experience in both day-to-day, special project, and long range comprehensive planning. In addition, I have been the city planner for a coastal barrier island community for the past 12 years and well understand the unique opportunities and challenges such a community faces.”
Madeira Beach, Treasure Island to share permitting
Dropped for now is a move that was being discussed to take back the building permit process from Treasure Island. The latest idea is for the two cities to share the work, and the proceeds.
A plan worked out by Crawford and Treasure Island City Manager Reid Silverboard would have Madeira Beach do the initial permitting, with Treasure Island handling the later stages, including inspections and enforcement. Madeira Beach would receive 30 percent of the building permit fee revenue, Crawford said.
Crawford called the arrangement a good deal for Madeira Beach.
“We are getting a significant deal,” he said, adding that the initial permitting done by the city “represents nowhere near 30 percent of the work involved.”
Crawford also said sharing of the permitting function could be viewed as a first step toward taking over the entire process.
“Setting up a building department is not easy. It’s going to cost us a lot of money,” he said. “This lets us take a baby step into it, to feel it out.”
The city has to decide whether it wants to control, or spur, development to determine whether a building department handling permitting would be worthwhile, Crawford said.
“That is the key,” he said. “Where are we going as far as promoting development?”
The permitting arrangement with Treasure Island will be voted on at an upcoming City Commission meeting.
Happy birthday
The city is celebrating the 65th anniversary of its founding this year. A birthday party is being planned along with the Fourth of July fireworks display, Vice Mayor Robin Vander Velde said.
Doggie dining
Madeira Beach will likely be joining a growing number of communities that allow dogs to join their owners in outdoor dining.
City Attorney Thomas Trask introduced an ordinance permitting dogs in the outdoor portion of public food service establishments. Trask, who also provides legal services to the city of Dunedin, said allowing doggie dining has been a positive experience for that community.
“It’s been a wonderful thing for Dunedin to allow people to bring their dogs to the outside bars and cafes,” he said.
Under the ordinance, businesses must apply for and receive a permit from the city’s Community Services Department before dogs are allowed on the premises. The permit application commits the business owner to a number of conditions that must be met. Permits expire on September 30 of each year and automatically terminate if the business changes ownership.
City Manager Crawford said dining outside is popular in Madeira Beach, and the addition of dogs to the mix is “a great idea.” “It is exciting for dog owners to be able to do that,” he said.
“This is a big thing,” said Vander Velde. She suggested the city promote itself as “dog-friendly Madeira Beach.”
The doggie dining ordinance will need to be approved on first and final readings at upcoming commission meetings.
More dog news
In another dog related action, the commission is considering allowing dogs, leashed or unleashed, on the city recreation complex property adjacent to city hall. Animals are currently banned from that property “whether running at large, on a leash or being carried.”
A lot of people would like to walk their dogs in that area,” Crawford said. “They are doing it now, all over the place,” he said.
The commissioners appeared agreeable to relaxing the dog ban at the recreation complex, but allowing canine walks or runs only during morning hours and never when organized activities are taking place on the ball fields.
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